


Worth It

by galerian_ash



Category: Riptide (TV)
Genre: Caring, Getting Together, M/M, Sharing Body Heat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-27
Updated: 2016-03-27
Packaged: 2018-05-29 13:31:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6376903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galerian_ash/pseuds/galerian_ash
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There was an arm around his waist, pulling him back against a firm body. Instinct and experience told him to fight back before it was too late, but some deeper part of him recognized the touch — would always recognize it, anytime, anywhere.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Worth It

**Author's Note:**

> I've been under the weather lately, so I wrote this is a self-indulgent little pick-me-up. Figured I might as well share, in case anyone else could use some unrepentant fluff :)

Nick climbed aboard the Riptide, only staggering a little. He felt like crap. He'd been fighting a cold all week, and the hours he'd just spent tailing Jefferson hadn't exactly helped.

Jefferson had gone joyriding, which would have been fine if it hadn't started to rain. Driving around, with the rain beating down on him and the biting wind making everything that much colder, had made Nick wish for another car — _any_ car, provided it had a roof.

Cody came jogging up the stairs from the stateroom as soon as Nick entered the salon. He stared at Nick, eyes wide. "You're absolutely drenched!" he exclaimed.

Nick glanced down. Cody's power of observation was as sharp as ever; he _was_ drenched, clothes plastered to his body like a second skin. And he was dripping water all over the place. "Don't worry, I'll wipe it up," he said, hoping to forestall a my-boat-this, my-boat-that rant.

Cody walked over to him, frowning. "The only thing you're gonna do is get in the shower, buddy."

He tugged Nick down the stairs and into the bathroom. Realizing the soundness of the idea, Nick went willingly. But he faltered when trying to unbutton his shirt — his fingers were numb, unable to do anything much except tremble.

Cody let out an unhappy-sounding grunt and reached out to help. "What were you thinking, anyway?" he muttered. "You should've just come home as soon as it started raining."

Nick blinked. "We were hired to watch both Jefferson senior _and_ junior. We agreed that you should follow the father, and I the son."

"I know that, Nick," Cody said, peeling off the shirt. He hesitated for a brief moment before starting to unzip Nick's jeans. Nick swallowed, looking away. Thank God he was almost frozen solid, or else his body might've reacted. "I meant that you were already sick," Cody continued. "Something like this is enough to give you a cold in the first place, you know."

"I'm fine, don't..." The rest of his sentence died with an ignoble croak as Cody went to his knees in front of him.

For a crazy, exhilarating, heart-stopping second, Nick was convinced that Cody had decided to take drastic measures to jolt them out of their standstill. Or maybe showdown was a more apt name for it — their relationship had been on the verge of evolving for a long time now. Nick wanted it to, desperately so, and he thought Cody felt the same way. But that sliver of uncertainty, of doubt and second-guessing his instincts, had been enough to make him unable to take that final step.

Maybe it made him a coward, but it was preferable to losing Cody's friendship. He wouldn't risk that until he was absolutely sure.

Now it seemed like the decision had been taken out of his hands, and Nick couldn't be happier. Till he realized that Cody hadn't knelt down to fulfill his wildest fantasies, but rather to — _platonically_ — take off his pants.

"Damn, these things are basically glued to you," Cody said, scowling. He gave them a couple of hard tugs and grinned in triumph as they finally slid down to pool around Nick's ankles. Cody went for his sneakers next, untying them before tapping his calf in a voiceless instruction to lift the leg.

He obeyed, only to instantly lose his balance. Cody steadied him, before guiding Nick's hand to his shoulder. "Hold on to me," he said, voice tight in that way it got when he was feeling guilty. He was probably beating himself up over this, somehow having found a reason why it was all his fault.

Nick let his hand linger on Cody's shoulder even after both shoes and jeans were off. He let his fingers trail up to stroke the nape of his neck. "Hey," he murmured, "I'll be fine. I _am_ fine. Okay?"

Cody tipped his head forward, and Nick took the opportunity to ruffle his hair, an almost unbearable feeling of fondness crowding his chest.

They stayed like that for a while, before Cody abruptly stood back up. His face was shuttered and he wouldn't meet Nick's gaze. "Think you can manage to shower on your own?"

"Yeah, of course," Nick answered, trying not to feel disappointed.

"I'll be right outside, so just call if you need anything." With that he left the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

There was no point in standing around moping, so Nick climbed into the shower. He let the warm water wash over him, slowly bringing feeling back to his body. Sighing in pleasure he leaned against the wall, letting his pounding head rest against the cool tiles as he closed his eyes.

There was an arm around his waist, pulling him back against a firm body. Instinct and experience told him to fight back before it was too late, but some deeper part of him recognized the touch — would always recognize it, anytime, anywhere.

Cody's voice was close, grumbling and annoyed. He tried to focus on the actual words. "...like an animal, locking your knees or something. Guess I should just be grateful that you've never fallen asleep while flying."

"I was asleep?" Nick asked, shaking his head to clear it. Cody still held him in a steady grip, and for that he was thankful.

"Ah, welcome back, big guy. You were asleep, yeah. And you would've run out of hot water in about thirty seconds."

"Huh."

Cody's fingers curled against Nick's side, nails lightly scraping the skin. "C'mon," he said, "let's get you dry."

He half dragged, half lifted Nick out of the shower, before throwing a towel over his head and beginning to rub. "Do me a favor and try to stay awake till I get you into bed, alright?"

Nick fought down the urge to smirk. Even his best dreams couldn't hold a candle to present reality — Cody's hands warm and gentle against his body, eyes soft with exasperated affection. He planned on staying awake to enjoy this for as long as he could possibly could.

Only problem was that the vigorous toweling and their closeness were starting to have an effect on him. He felt equal amounts of relief and loss when Cody stepped back after wrapping the towel around his hips.

He let Cody lead him to the door, but stopped dead in his tracks once it was opened. The sharp intake of breath was completely involuntary, and did nothing to lessen the feel of the cold air hitting his body.

"Dammit," Cody swore. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I should've opened the door sooner; let you get used to the temperature change gradually."

"It's okay," Nick said, even though he didn't feel okay at all. The warmth he'd regained seemed to have disappeared in the blink of an eye. He pressed himself closer to Cody, shivering.

It was a good thing their stateroom was so close, or Nick wasn't sure he could've made it. It was rough going as it was, despite Cody supporting his weight and helping him to quickly get under the covers.

Cody went to the closet next, rummaging through it and strewing things all over the place. "Where's that extra blanket?" he said, sounding frustrated and upset.

"Don't worry about it, I'm fine," Nick said — or tried to say, in any case. It was a bit hard to manage intelligible speech with the way his teeth were currently chattering, and the words he did manage to force out sounded oddly slurred.

Cody turned. He stared at Nick for a moment, before suddenly stalking forward. "Oh, to hell with it," he muttered, as he pulled off his shirt.

Nick didn't quite understand the sequence of events, but it wasn't as if he cared all that much, either. Whatever reason Cody had for getting naked — and he _was_ , ditching his pants and briefs and everything — was just fine with him.

Even better than the nice view he was getting was the fact that Cody had apparently moved closer in order to get into his bunk. He held his breath as Cody climbed in behind him and got under the covers, pressing his body up against Nick's.

He was warm. Really, really warm. Nick sank back into the hold with a soft hum of gratitude. "Just relax," Cody whispered. "We'll get you warmed up again in no time."

He'd always loved Cody's hands. They were as beautiful as the rest of him, and held the capacity for both strength and gentleness. Yet never had he loved them as much as he did right now; loved the solid weight of them against his body, rubbing and massaging, granting warmth wherever they roamed.

It didn't take long for him to stop shaking. Cody remained where he was, though his touch turned softer in response. "Better?" he asked.

"Mhm."

Cody's hand moved up and down his side in slow, languid strokes. It finally came to rest on his chest, right over his heart. Nick couldn't help but smile. The gesture spoke volumes to him — both protective and possessive. He liked it. Liked it a lot.

"Your heart's racing," Cody said. He was close enough that his lips brushed against Nick's skin when he spoke.

Nick swallowed. This was it. It was now or never. He turned around, coming to face Cody. "You know why, don't you?"

Cody looked at him for a while, gaze searching. He finally reached out to take Nick's hand in his own, carefully moving it to lie over his own heart. It beat strong and quick against Nick's palm. "Yeah," Cody answered, "I know."

"You're gonna catch my cold," Nick said, even as he tipped his head forward.

Cody closed the final distance between them, capturing his lips in a soft kiss. "Trust me," he said when he pulled back, "it's worth it."

\----

"I got you some coffee, buddy. Nice and warm. Gonna make your sore throat feel a lot better."

The shapeless form beneath the covers shifted slightly. "With milk?" came the question. Of course, it sounded more like 'wid bilk' thanks to Cody's stuffy nose, but Nick wisely refrained from commenting on that fact.

"Yep," he answered, "and I even put some sugar in it, so it's sweet for you."

Cody's head popped up. His hair was sleep-mussed, and his nose was a pinkish shade of red. He looked adorable as hell, but Nick wisely refrained from saying that, too.

"Sit up," he instructed, squeezing himself in between the headboard and Cody. He pulled Cody back against his chest and handed him the coffee.

He drank a third of it before handing the mug back to Nick. "Thanks," he mumbled, as he twisted around to face Nick.

"No problem," Nick said, putting down the cup before leaning forward to press a kiss to Cody's temple. "Tell me if you want more."

Cody pursed his lips, a glint of amusement in his eyes. "I do. I do want more."

Nick raised his eyebrows. He was just about to reach for the mug when he got it. Smiling, he kissed the top of Cody's head — and the tip of his nose, for good measure. "Better?"

"Mm," Cody replied, burrowing closer. "I could do with some more, but you might catch my cold. Or," he added, a lopsided grin on his face, "rather, get your own cold back again."

"True, true," Nick said. "But this one guy I know said it was worth it."

"Oh yeah? Sounds like a very smart guy."

"Well..." Nick drawled, making a show of thoughtfully drumming his fingers against Cody's hip. Cody let out a low growl and jabbed two fingers into Nick's ribs. He yelped, and laughingly gave in. "Okay, okay! I guess he has his moments, yeah."

Cody rolled his eyes. He opened his mouth, no doubt to deliver some biting retort, but Nick shut him up with a thorough kiss. His eyes were dazed and there was a soft, happy smile on his lips when Nick pulled back.

"Yeah," Nick whispered, "definitely worth it."


End file.
